U.S. patent application number 15/098526 was filed with the patent office on 2016-08-11 for processing apparatus and image forming apparatus.
The applicant listed for this patent is Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha. Invention is credited to Yuhi AKAGAWA.
Application Number | 20160229651 15/098526 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 50883311 |
Filed Date | 2016-08-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160229651 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
AKAGAWA; Yuhi |
August 11, 2016 |
PROCESSING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS
Abstract
An image forming apparatus includes a main body and a processing
apparatus. The processing apparatus includes a first processing
unit and a second processing unit. The main body has a manual-feed
tray at one lateral face. The first processing unit and the second
processing unit are stacked in the vertical direction on the same
lateral face side of the main body as the manual-feed tray
provided. The second processing unit is slidable in a toward-away
direction between a connecting position and a separate position,
and has a hollow to insert the manual-feed tray therein at the
connecting position.
Inventors: |
AKAGAWA; Yuhi; (Osaka-shi,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha |
Osaka |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
50883311 |
Appl. No.: |
15/098526 |
Filed: |
April 14, 2016 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
14648767 |
Jun 1, 2015 |
9346636 |
|
|
PCT/JP2013/081850 |
Nov 27, 2013 |
|
|
|
15098526 |
|
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65H 2601/321 20130101;
B65H 31/22 20130101; B65H 2402/40 20130101; B65H 2405/324 20130101;
B65H 3/44 20130101; B65H 2402/31 20130101; B65H 2402/10 20130101;
B65H 1/266 20130101; B65H 2402/411 20130101; B65H 2402/32 20130101;
B65H 5/26 20130101; B65H 2405/312 20130101; B65H 2407/21 20130101;
B65H 1/00 20130101; G03G 2221/1654 20130101; B65H 2405/31 20130101;
B65H 31/24 20130101; G03G 15/6502 20130101; G03G 21/1647 20130101;
G03G 2221/1684 20130101; B65H 31/00 20130101; B65H 2801/06
20130101; B65H 1/04 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B65H 5/26 20060101
B65H005/26; B65H 31/00 20060101 B65H031/00; B65H 1/26 20060101
B65H001/26; B65H 1/04 20060101 B65H001/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 4, 2012 |
JP |
2012-264920 |
Nov 11, 2013 |
JP |
2013-232694 |
Claims
1. (canceled)
2. An image forming apparatus comprising: a main body having an
image forming section that performs image forming processing to a
sheet; a sheet tray on which sheets supplied to the image forming
section or sheets output from the image forming section are
stacked; a sheet-feeding unit that stores sheets fed to the image
forming section; and a post-processing apparatus that performs
post-processing to a sheet subjected to image forming processing by
the image forming section, wherein the sheet tray, the
sheet-feeding unit and the post-processing apparatus are configured
to be stackable in a vertical direction.
3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the
sheet tray has a base end part supported at one lateral face of the
main body.
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the
sheet tray is configured to be rotatable around the based end part
as a supporting point between a protruding position that protrudes
in a horizontal direction and a storage position along the lateral
face of the main body.
5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is configured to be slidable in a
toward-away direction to move toward or away from the main
body.
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the
sheet-feeding unit and the post-processing apparatus are disposed
so as to be separated in the vertical direction.
7. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is disposed upward away from the
sheet-feeding unit, and the post-processing apparatus is supported
to the main body via a slide rail.
8. An image forming apparatus comprising: a main body having an
image forming section that performs image forming processing to a
sheet; a sheet tray on which sheets supplied to the image forming
section or sheets output from the image forming section are
stacked; a sheet-feeding unit that stores sheets fed to the image
forming section; and a post-processing apparatus that performs
post-processing to a sheet subjected to image forming processing by
the image forming section, wherein the sheet tray, the
sheet-feeding unit and the post-processing apparatus are configured
to be able to be disposed on a same lateral face of the main body
to be stacked in a vertical direction.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the
sheet tray has a base end part supported at the same lateral face
of the main body.
10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the
sheet tray is configured to be rotatable around the based end part
as a supporting point between a protruding position that protrudes
in a horizontal direction and a storage position along the lateral
face of the main body.
11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is configured to be slidable in a
toward-away direction to move toward or away from the main
body.
12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the
sheet-feeding unit and the post-processing apparatus are disposed
so as to be separated in the vertical direction.
13. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is disposed upward away from the
sheet-feeding unit, and the post-processing apparatus is supported
to the main body via a slide rail.
14. An image forming apparatus comprising: a main body having an
image forming section that performs image forming processing to a
sheet; a sheet tray on which sheets supplied to the image forming
section or sheets output from the image forming section are
stacked; a sheet-feeding unit that stores sheets fed to the image
forming section; and a post-processing apparatus that performs
post-processing to a sheet subjected to image forming processing by
the image forming section, wherein the sheet-feeding unit and the
post-processing apparatus are configured in such a manner that the
sheet tray is able to be placed between the sheet-feeding unit and
the post-processing apparatus.
15. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the
sheet tray has a base end part supported at one lateral face of the
main body.
16. The image forming apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the
sheet tray is configured to be rotatable around the based end part
as a supporting point between a protruding position that protrudes
in a horizontal direction and a storage position along the lateral
face of the main body.
17. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is configured to be slidable in a
toward-away direction to move toward or away from the main
body.
18. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the
sheet-feeding unit and the post-processing apparatus are disposed
so as to be separated in the vertical direction.
19. The image forming apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the
post-processing apparatus is disposed upward away from the
sheet-feeding unit, and the post-processing apparatus is supported
to the main body via a slide rail.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a processing apparatus
including a first processing unit and a second processing unit, the
processing apparatus being disposed on a lateral face side of a
main apparatus to perform image forming processing to a sheet, and
relates to an image forming apparatus including the same.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] Conventionally some image forming apparatuses include a
processing apparatus made up of a plurality of processing units for
extended features, in addition to a main body (main apparatus) of
the apparatus to perform image forming processing to a sheet.
Exemplary processing units include a high-capacity sheet feeding
apparatus to store sheets therein and feed a sheet to the main body
of the apparatus, and a post-processing apparatus to perform
post-processing to a sheet subjected to image forming processing by
the main body of the apparatus. If a first processing unit and a
second processing unit are disposed on mutually opposed lateral
faces of the main body of the apparatus, then the footprint of the
image forming apparatus will be increased.
[0003] Then, an image forming apparatus is known, including a
sheet-output tray (hereinafter this may be simply called an output
tray) on a sheet-feeding tray (hereinafter this may be simply
called a feeding tray) (see Patent Literature 1, for example). This
conventional image forming apparatus includes the feeding tray and
the output tray that are vertically stacked, whereby the footprint
of the apparatus can be decreased as compared with the case where
the feeding tray and the output tray are disposed on different
lateral faces of the main body of the apparatus.
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
[0004] Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open
No. 2004-230880
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0005] In the conventional image forming apparatus, however, the
output tray located above cannot slide to move toward and away from
the main body of the apparatus. If a sheet fed or output is not
conveyed successfully at a connecting part with the main body of
the apparatus, it is difficult to perform maintenance, such as
removing of the sheet.
[0006] In the conventional image forming apparatus, lightweight and
simple-structured members, such as the feeding tray and the output
tray, are stacked vertically on the same lateral face of the main
body of the apparatus, which are not a processing unit. The
conventional image forming apparatus is configured so that the
output tray is bendable to be lifted upward, which is the
configuration that can be achieved because the output tray is
lightweight. A similar configuration cannot be applied to a
processing unit that is relatively large in mass. In this way, in
the case of a conventional image forming apparatus including a
first processing unit and a second processing unit, it is difficult
to perform maintenance of the processing units.
[0007] If the conventional image forming apparatus is further
provided with a processing unit that is slidable to move toward and
away from the main body of the apparatus on the same lateral face
as the sheet trays, in addition to the sheet trays provided at the
main body of the apparatus, the footprint of the apparatus as a
whole will be increased because it requires the footprint of the
processing unit also in addition to the footprint for the main body
of the apparatus and the sheet trays.
[0008] Then the present invention aims to provide a processing
apparatus capable of decreasing the footprint of the apparatus, and
facilitating maintenance of a processing unit provided on a lateral
face of a main apparatus, and to provide an image forming apparatus
including the same.
Solution to Problem
[0009] A processing apparatus of the present invention includes a
first processing unit and a second processing unit. The first
processing unit and the second processing unit are stacked
vertically on a lateral face of a main apparatus to perform image
forming processing to a sheet, the main apparatus being provided
with a sheet tray having a base end part supported at the lateral
face. The second processing unit is disposed on the first
processing unit, the second processing unit being slidable between
a connecting position of connecting to the main apparatus and a
predetermined separate position away from the main apparatus in a
toward-away direction to move toward or away from the main
apparatus, the second processing unit having a space part, in which
at least part of the sheet tray can be displaced when the second
processing unit is at the connecting position. The space part has
openings at a lateral face of the second processing unit that is on
a side of the main apparatus facing the main apparatus and at least
one lateral face other than the lateral face on the side of the
main apparatus.
[0010] With this configuration, since the first processing unit and
the second processing unit are vertically stacked on the same
lateral face side of the main apparatus, the footprint of the
apparatus can be decreased as compared with the case where the
processing units are disposed on mutually different lateral faces
of the main apparatus. Further the second processing unit is
slidable in the toward-away direction of the main apparatus, and so
the connecting part between the second processing unit and the main
apparatus can be open, whereby workability to this connecting part
can be improved. That is, even when a failure in conveyance of a
sheet occurs between the second processing unit and the main
apparatus, maintenance such as removing of the sheet can be easily
performed. Moreover, the second processing unit located above is
slid to expose a part of the top face of the first processing unit,
whereby the workability to the first processing unit from the above
can be improved. This can facilitate the maintenance of the first
processing unit as well.
[0011] Since the first processing unit, the second processing unit
and the sheet tray are disposed collectively on the same lateral
face side of the main apparatus, the working efficiency can be
improved during maintenance of two or more of the first processing
unit, the second processing unit and the sheet tray.
[0012] Since at least a part of the sheet tray is displaced in the
space part when the second processing unit is at the connecting
position, the footprint of the sheet tray and the footprint of the
second processing unit overlap one another at least partially. This
can decrease the footprint of the processing apparatus as a
whole.
[0013] When the second processing unit is disposed at the
connecting position as well, a sheet can be supplied or be taken
out from the sheet tray through the opening that is provided at the
face of the second processing unit other than the lateral face on
the main apparatus side, and so the workability to the sheet tray
is good. When the second processing unit is moved to the separate
position, maintenance for the sheet tray can be easily
performed.
[0014] An image forming apparatus of the present invention
includes: a main body, a first processing unit and a second
processing unit. The main body performs image forming processing to
a sheet. The main body is provided with a sheet tray having a base
end part supported at a lateral face of the main body. The first
processing unit and the second processing unit are stacked
vertically on the lateral face of the main body. The second
processing unit is disposed on the first processing unit, the
second processing unit being slidable between a connecting position
of connecting to the main body and a predetermined separate
position away from the main body in a toward-away direction to move
toward or away from the main body, the second processing unit
having a space part, in which at least part of the sheet tray can
be displaced when the second processing unit is at the connecting
position. The space part has openings at a lateral face of the
second processing unit that is on a side of the main body facing
the main body and at least one lateral face other than the lateral
face on the side of the main body.
[0015] With this configuration, since the first processing unit and
the second processing unit are vertically stacked on the same
lateral face side of the main body, the footprint of the apparatus
can be decreased as compared with the case where the processing
units are disposed on mutually different lateral faces of the main
body. Further the second processing unit is slidable in the
toward-away direction of the main body, and so the connecting part
between the second processing unit and the main body can be open,
whereby workability to this connecting part can be improved. That
is, even when a failure in conveyance of a sheet occurs between the
second processing unit and the main body, maintenance such as
removing of the sheet can be easily performed. Moreover, the second
processing unit located above is slid to expose a part of the top
face of the first processing unit, whereby the workability to the
first processing unit from the above can be improved. This can
facilitate the maintenance of the first processing unit as
well.
[0016] Since the first processing unit, the second processing unit
and the sheet tray are disposed collectively on the same lateral
face side of the main body, the working efficiency can be improved
during maintenance of two or more of the first processing unit, the
second processing unit and the sheet tray.
[0017] Since at least apart of the sheet tray is displaced into the
space part when the second processing unit is at the connecting
position, the footprint of the sheet tray and the footprint of the
second processing unit overlap one another at least partially. This
can decrease the footprint of the image forming apparatus as a
whole.
[0018] When the second processing unit is disposed at the
connecting position as well, a sheet can be supplied or be taken
out from the sheet tray through the opening that is provided at the
face of the second processing unit other than the lateral face on
the main body side, and so the workability to the sheet tray is
good. When the second processing unit is moved to the separate
position, maintenance for the sheet tray can be easily
performed.
Advantageous Effects of Invention
[0019] According to the present invention, the footprint of the
apparatus can be decreased, and maintenance of a first processing
unit and a second processing unit provided on a lateral face of a
main apparatus can be easily performed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 is a front view illustrative of the schematic
configuration of an image forming apparatus according to Embodiment
1 of the present invention.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view illustrative of the image
forming apparatus where a second processing unit is disposed at a
separate position.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a schematic left lateral view of the image forming
apparatus.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of the image forming
apparatus.
[0024] FIG. 5 illustrates the configuration where an output tray
and a manual-feed tray are rotatable.
[0025] FIG. 6 illustrates the configuration where a side door of
the main body is openable/closable.
[0026] FIG. 7A is a plan view illustrative of the configuration
where the second processing unit is supported at the top face of
the first processing unit, and is slidable in the toward-away
direction, and FIG. 7B is a front view thereof.
[0027] FIG. 8 is schematic cross-sectional view of the image
forming apparatus to describe a specific example of a sheet
conveyance path.
[0028] FIG. 9 is a schematic left lateral view of an image forming
apparatus according to Embodiment 2.
[0029] FIG. 10 is a front view illustrative of the schematic
configuration of the image forming apparatus according to
Embodiment 2.
[0030] FIG. 11 is a front view illustrative of the schematic
configuration of the image forming apparatus according to
Embodiment 3.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0031] As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, an image forming apparatus
10 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention includes a
main body 20 of the apparatus and a processing apparatus 80. The
processing apparatus 80 includes a first processing unit 30 and a
second processing unit 40. The main body 20 is a main apparatus
relative to the processing apparatus 80. The image forming
apparatus 10 in Embodiment 1 is an electrophotographic-type copying
machine.
[0032] The main body 20 includes an Auto Document Feeder (ADF) 21,
an image forming section 22, a sheet-feeding cassette 23, a
manual-feed tray 24, and an image reading section not
illustrated.
[0033] The ADF 21 conveys a document one by one so as to pass
through a predetermined image reading position. The image reading
section creates image data by reading an image on a document
conveyed through the image reading position.
[0034] The sheet-feeding cassette 23 stores sheets of a size that
is frequently used. The manual-feed tray 24 has abase end supported
at one of lateral faces of the main body 20. The manual-feed tray
24 is rotatable around the based end as the supporting point
between a protruding position that protrudes horizontally as in
FIG. 1 and the storage position along the lateral face of the main
body 20 above the base end as in FIG. 2. The manual-feedtray 24 is
disposed at the protruding position when the main body 20 is in the
operating state, and is disposed at the storage position during
maintenance.
[0035] The manual-feed tray 24 is to place a sheet of a size that
is relatively less-frequently used. The manual-feed tray 24 is one
example of the sheet tray. A sheet is supplied to the image forming
section 22 from selected one of the sheet-feeding cassette 23 and
the manual-feed tray 24.
[0036] The image forming section 22 includes a photoreceptor drum
221 and a fixing unit 222, and executes image forming processing to
form an image on a sheet in accordance with image data. The image
forming section 22 is not limited to electrophotographic type,
which may be of an ink jet type, for example.
[0037] The first processing unit 30 and the second processing unit
40 are disposed on the same lateral face side of the main body 20
to be stacked in the vertical direction 91. This can reduce the
footprint of the apparatus as compared with the case where these
units are disposed on mutually different lateral faces of the main
body 20. The first processing unit 30 and the second processing
unit 40 are disposed on the same lateral face side as the
manual-feed tray 24.
[0038] The first processing unit 30, the second processing unit 40
and the manual-feed tray 24 are disposed collectively on the same
lateral face side of the main body 20, and so the working
efficiency can be improved during maintenance of two or more of the
first processing unit 30, the second processing unit 40 and the
manual-feed tray 24.
[0039] The first processing unit 30 is fixedly joined to the main
body 20 with a screw or the like not illustrated. In one example,
the first processing unit 30 is a high-capacity sheet-feeding unit
to store sheets therein and feed a sheet to the image forming
section 22. The sheet conveyance path of the first processing unit
30 and the sheet conveyance path for reception of the image forming
section 22 are formed continuously. The first processing unit 30
feeds a sheet one by one to the image forming section 22 as needed.
Since the sheet-feeding unit is provided apart from the main body
20, a large quantity of sheets can be stored in the sheet-feeding
unit, whereby image forming processing can be performed
continuously on a large quantity of sheets that are supplied at one
time.
[0040] The second processing unit 40 is disposed on the first
processing unit 30. The second processing unit 40 is slidable in a
toward-away direction 92 to move toward or away from the main body
20 between the connecting position where it is connected to the
main body 20 as in FIG. 1, and a predetermined separate position
where it is away from the main body 20 as in FIG. 2. The second
processing unit 40 is disposed at the connecting position when the
main body 20 is in the operating state.
[0041] Specifically as illustrated in FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B, the
second processing unit 40 is configured to be slidable in the
toward-away direction 92 while being supported at the top face of
the first processing unit 30. On the top face of the first
processing unit 30, rail members 60A and 60B are provided so as to
be extended in the toward-away direction 92, and the second
processing unit 40 has rollers 61 at the bottom face so that the
rollers 61 travel along the rail members 60A and 60B, whereby the
second processing unit 40 slides to move in the toward-away
direction 92 while being supported at the top face of the first
processing unit 30. Since the second processing unit 40 slides
while being supported at the top face of the first processing unit
30, unintended inclination of the second processing unit 40 in the
toward-away direction 92 or in a depth direction 93 orthogonal to
the toward-away direction 92 and the vertical direction 91 can be
prevented.
[0042] The second processing unit 40 has a hollow 48, into which at
least a part of the manual-feed tray 24 at the protruding position
is to be inserted at the connecting position. The hollow 48 has
openings at the lateral face on the main body side (main-apparatus
side lateral face) facing the main body 20 and at least one face
other than the lateral face on the main body side of the lateral
faces of the second processing unit 40. In Embodiment 1, the hollow
48 penetrates through the toward-away direction 92. The hollow 48
has a space where a sheet can be loaded between the manual-feed
tray 24 and the ceiling face of the hollow 48 when the second
processing unit 40 is disposed at the connecting position.
[0043] Since the manual-feed tray 24 is inserted into the hollow 48
when the second processing unit 40 is at the connecting position,
the footprint of the manual-feed tray 24 and the footprint of the
second processing unit 40 overlap one another at least partially.
This can decrease the footprint of the image forming apparatus 10
as a whole. Further, since the hollow 48 penetrates through in the
toward-away direction 92, operations to the second processing unit
40, such as supplying of sheets to the manual-feed tray 24 from the
opposite side of the main body 20 can be performed even when the
second processing unit 40 is at the connecting position.
[0044] In one example, the second processing unit 40 is a
post-processing apparatus to perform post-processing to a sheet
subjected to image forming processing at the image forming section
22. At the connecting position, a sheet conveyance path 41 for
reception of the second processing unit 40 is continuous to a sheet
conveyance path 25 for output of the image forming section 22,
whereby a sheet subjected to image forming processing can be
conveyed to the second processing unit 40 smoothly. Exemplary
post-processing includes stapling, punching, Z folding, face-up
outputting, face-down outputting and sorting. Post-processing
performed to a sheet subjected to image forming processing can
improve the efficiency of paper work.
[0045] Referring to FIG. 8, the following describes a specific
example of the sheet conveyance path when the image forming
apparatus 10 is of an electrophotographic type. As a sheet supplied
from the sheet-feeding cassette 23 travels through a sheet
conveyance path 27, a toner image is formed by the photoreceptor
drum 221, an exposure unit 223, a developing unit 224 and the like
on the sheet, and the toner image is fixed to the sheet by the
fixing unit 222. Then, the sheet passes through the sheet
conveyance path 25 and the sheet conveyance path 41 to be conveyed
to the second processing unit 40, where punching is performed to
the sheet by a punching unit 61 for outputting to an output tray
43. The configuration of the sheet conveyance path is not limited
to this.
[0046] As illustrated in FIG. 2, when the second processing unit 40
is disposed at the separate position, then the connecting part
between the second processing unit 40 and the main body 20 can be
open, meaning that the workability to this connecting part can be
improved. That is, even when a problem occurs, such as a failure in
conveyance of a sheet, between the second processing unit 40 and
the main body 20, maintenance such as removing of the sheet can be
easily performed.
[0047] The second processing unit 40 disposed at the separate
position facilitates the maintenance of the manual-feed tray
24.
[0048] The second processing unit 40 disposed at the separate
position allows the manual-feed tray 24 to be rotated from the
protruding position to the storage position.
[0049] The first processing unit 30 has an opening 31 of a size,
through which a member relating to image forming processing is
loaded or unloaded. In this embodiment, a sheet is supplied to the
first processing unit 30 through the opening 31. In the state where
the second processing unit 40 is disposed at the separate position
and the manual-feed tray 24 is disposed at the storage position,
then the opening 31 is exposed to the outside.
[0050] In this embodiment, the first processing unit 30 is provided
with a lid member 32 that can open and close the opening 31. When
the second processing unit 40 is disposed at the separate position
and the manual-feed tray 24 is disposed at the storage position,
then the lid member 32 is exposed to the outside, and when the lid
member 32 is opened, the opening 31 is open.
[0051] In this way, when the second processing unit 40 is disposed
at the separate position and the manual-feed tray 24 is disposed at
the storage position, a part of the top face of the first
processing unit 30 is exposed, so that the workability to the first
processing unit 30 from the above can be improved. Specifically,
the second processing unit 40 is disposed at the separate position
and the manual-feed tray 24 is disposed at the storage position,
and then the opening 31 is open by opening the lid member 32,
whereby workability to the inside of the first processing unit 30
through the opening 31 can be improved. This can facilitate the
maintenance of the first processing unit 30 as well.
[0052] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the second processing unit 40
preferably has dimensions that are equal to and less than the
dimensions of the first processing unit 30 in both of the
toward-away direction 92 and the depth direction 93. In this
embodiment, the second processing unit 40 has a dimension L2 that
is smaller than a dimension L1 of the first processing unit 30 in
the toward-away direction 92, and has a dimension D1 that is the
same dimension of the first processing unit 30 in the depth
direction 93. Since the second processing unit 40 is not larger
than the first processing unit 30 in a plan view, the second
processing unit 40 can be stably supported by the first processing
unit 30.
[0053] Although the second processing unit 40 is slidable in the
toward-away direction 92, the second processing unit is disposed so
not to protrude outward of the first processing unit 30 in a plan
view when the main body 20 is in the operating state. This can
further decrease the footprint of the image forming apparatus 10
when the main body 20 is in the operating state.
[0054] It is preferable that the second processing unit 40 be
lighter in weight than the first processing unit 30. Since the
barycentric position of the first processing unit 30 and the second
processing unit 40 that are considered as one object is lowered,
the second processing unit 40 can be stably supported by the first
processing unit 30.
[0055] In the toward-away direction 92, the dimension L4 of the
manual-feed tray 24 is smaller than the dimension L3 of the second
processing unit 40 other than the output tray 43, and in the depth
direction 93, the dimension D3 of the manual-feed tray 24 is
smaller than the dimension D2 of the hollow 48. The manual-feed
tray 24 does not protrude outwardly of the first processing unit 30
in a plan view.
[0056] As illustrated in FIG. 5, the second processing unit 40 in
Embodiment 1 includes a second processing unit main body 42 and the
output tray 43. The output tray 43 is supported at a lateral face
of the second processing unit main body 42 on the opposite side of
the main body 20 so as to be rotatable in a predetermined range
around a shaft member 44 extending in the depth direction 93.
[0057] The lower limit position of the rotatable range of the
output tray 43 is preferably at a position where the output tray 43
is directed obliquely upward toward the downstream in the direction
away from the main body 20, i.e., in the sheet conveyance direction
on the output tray 43. The output tray 43 is rotatable upward from
the lower limit position. This can avoid breakage of the output
tray 43 if the output tray 43 collides with an external object 50
such as wall during movement of the second processing unit 40 in
the direction away from the main body 20, because the output tray
43 can rotate upward. When the second processing unit 40 is moved
in the direction away from the main body 20, the output tray 43 may
not collide with the external object 50, but the footprint of the
apparatus can be decreased more because the output tray 43 is
rotated upward.
[0058] In one example, the upper limit position of the output tray
43 is the position where the downstream end of the output tray 43
in the direction away from the main body 20 is overlapped with the
downstream end of the second processing unit main body 42 in a plan
view. Since the shaft member 44 is disposed upstream of the
downstream end of the second processing unit main body 42, the
downstream end of the output tray 43 at the upper limit position is
disposed downstream of the shaft member 44 in the direction away
from the main body 20. When the second processing unit 40 is moved
from the connecting position to the separate position, even if the
output tray 43 rotates due to excessive force, the downstream end
of the output tray 43 is not closer to the main body 20 than the
shaft member 44. That is, when the second processing unit 40 is
moved from the separate position to the connecting position, the
output tray 43 can rotate from the upper limit position to the
lower limit position due to its own weight. In this way, there is
no need to perform the operation to rotate the output tray 43, and
so the workability can be improved.
[0059] As illustrated in FIG. 6, the main body 20 has a side door
26 that can be open/close at a lateral face supporting the
manual-feed tray 24. In on example, the side door 26 is slidable in
the toward-away direction 92. In this embodiment, the sheet
conveyance path of the image forming section 22 is provided on a
lateral face side where the first processing unit 30, the second
processing unit 40 and the manual-feed tray 24 are disposed. This
can shorten the length of the overall sheet conveyance path as
compared with the case where the sheet conveyance path is provided
on a lateral face side opposite of this, and so can suppress a
failure in conveyance of a sheet.
[0060] Since the main body 20 has the side door 26 on the same
lateral face side as that of the first processing unit 30 and the
second processing unit 40, the side door 26 is opened when the
second processing unit 40 is disposed at the separate position,
whereby maintenance of the inside of the main body 20 can be easily
performed from the lateral face side of the main body 20. This can
facilitate the maintenance of the photoreceptor drum 221, the
fixing unit 222, the sheet conveyance path and the like.
[0061] A first lock mechanism to lock the side door 26 in the close
state to the main body 20 and a second lock mechanism to lock the
second processing unit 40 at the connecting position are further
provided, where the first lock mechanism and the second lock
mechanism may be configured in an interlocking manner.
[0062] Specifically, the following configuration example can be
considered. A first cylinder that can be displaced vertically is
provided at the side door 26, and the first cylinder displaced
downward latches with a first recess provided at the main body 20
so that the side door 26 is locked in the close state to the main
body 20. On the other hand, the first cylinder displaced upward
unlocks the first lock mechanism.
[0063] Similarly, a second cylinder that can be displaced
vertically is provided at the front face of the second processing
unit 40. The second cylinder displaced downward latches with a
second recess provided at the front face of the first processing
unit 30 so that sliding of the second processing unit 40 is locked.
On the other hand, the second cylinder displaced upward unlocks the
second lock mechanism.
[0064] The first cylinder and the second cylinder are mutually
joined, so that vertical movement of one of them means vertical
movement of the other in the same direction at the same time.
[0065] This allows switching between lock and unlock of the side
door 26 and the second processing unit 40 with one operation, and
so the workability can be improved.
[0066] The side door 26 may be fixed to the second processing unit
40 so that the side door 26 and the manual-feed tray 24 are slid
together with the second processing unit 40. This can expose the
opening 31 of the first processing unit 30 by moving the second
processing unit 40 to the separate position, and the workability
can be improved without necessity of rotating the manual-feed tray
24 to the storage position.
[0067] The hollow 48 may have openings at a lateral face of the
second processing unit 40 on the main body side facing the main
body 20 and at least one face other than the lateral face on the
main body side, and so have openings at the lateral face of the
second processing unit 40 on the main body side and at least one of
the lateral faces of the lateral face on the opposite side of the
main body side, the lateral face on the front face side and the
lateral face on the rear face side. That is, the hollow 48 may open
to two faces, three faces or four faces including the lateral face
of the second processing unit 40 on the main body side. The opening
of the hollow 48 does not open at the entire area of one lateral
face in the width direction, and of course it may open so as to
leave the support part to support apart above the hollow 48 of the
second processing unit 40.
[0068] For instance, as in the image forming apparatus 10 according
to Embodiment 2 in FIGS. 9 and 10, the hollow 48 may penetrate
through in the toward-away direction 92, and may open to the
lateral face of the second processing unit 40 on the front face
side as well so as to open at three lateral faces including the
lateral face on the main body side, the lateral face on the
opposite side of the lateral face on the main body side and the
lateral face on the front face side. Such a configuration
facilitates the operation such as supplying of a sheet to the
manual-feed tray 24 from the front face side when the second
processing unit 40 is disposed at the connecting position as well,
and so the operability and the working efficiency of the user can
be improved.
[0069] The hollow 48 may open at the two lateral faces including
the lateral face on the main body side and the lateral face on the
front face side. In this case as well, the advantageous effect of
facilitating the operation such as supplying of a sheet to the
manual-feed tray 24 from the front face side can be achieved.
[0070] As in the image forming apparatus 10 according to Embodiment
3 in FIG. 11, the second processing unit 40 and the first
processing unit 30 may be disposed so as to be separated in the
vertical direction 91. This can makes use of the space between the
second processing unit 40 and the first processing unit 30 in the
vertical direction 91 effectively. For instance, when at least the
second processing unit 40 is disposed at the connecting position,
the manual-feed tray 24 is disposed between the second processing
unit 40 and the first processing unit 30 in the vertical direction
91, whereby supplying and taking-out of a sheet to/from the
manual-feed tray 24 can be easily performed from any direction
including the toward-away direction 92 and the depth direction 93,
and so the workability can be improved. In the image forming
apparatus 10 according to Embodiment 3, the space between the
second processing unit 40 and the first processing unit 30 in the
vertical direction 91 corresponds to the hollow 48.
[0071] In such a disposition of the second processing unit 40 and
the first processing unit 30 separated in the vertical direction
91, the second processing unit 40 is movable with respect to the
main body 20 in the toward-away direction 92 as follows. As
illustrated in FIG. 11, a pair of slide rails 70 that includes an
outer rail, a middle rail and an inner rail and is stretchable in
two steps is prepared, and the outer rails are provided at the main
body 20 and the inner rails are provided at the second processing
unit 40. That is, the second processing unit 40 is supported to the
main body 20 via the pair of slide rails. Pressing the second
processing unit 40 along the toward-away direction 92 makes the
slide rails 70 elongate and contract, so that the second processing
unit 40 moves with respect to the main body 20 in the toward-away
direction 92. A specific example of the slide rails 70 may be
accuride rail (trade name). This is not a limited example, and
other known techniques may be used.
[0072] On the same lateral face of the main body 20 as the first
processing unit 30 and the second processing unit 40 provided, an
output tray may be provided instead of the manual-feed tray 24.
Such a configuration also can lead to the advantageous effect of
decreasing the footprint and facilitating maintenance of the first
processing unit 30 and the second processing unit 40 provided on
the lateral face of the main body 20.
[0073] The lid member 32 is not always provided. The opening 31 may
be open/close by sliding the second processing unit 40 without the
lid member 32. In this configuration, the bottom face of the second
processing unit 40 can serve as the lid member.
[0074] In both of the toward-away direction 92 and the depth
direction 93, a part of the second processing unit 40 other than
the output tray 43, i.e., the second processing unit main body 42
may have a dimension L3 that is equal to or less than a dimension
L1 of the first processing unit 30. As stated above, although it is
preferable that the second processing unit 40 is not larger than
the first processing unit 30 in a plan view, since the output tray
43 is relatively lightweight as compared with the first processing
unit 30 and the second processing unit main body 42, it may be
configured so that the second processing unit main body 42 is not
larger than the first processing unit 30 in a plan view, whereby
the second processing unit 40 can be stably supported by the first
processing unit 30.
[0075] Both of the first processing unit 30 and the second
processing unit 40 may be sheet-feeding apparatuses or
post-processing apparatuses. This can lead to the advantageous
effects of decreasing the footprint and facilitating maintenance of
the first processing unit 30 and the second processing unit 40. A
similar effect can be achieved from the configuration where the
first processing unit 30 is a post-processing unit and the second
processing unit 40 is a sheet-feeding unit.
[0076] The present invention is applicable to an image forming
apparatus 10 that is an ink jet type image forming apparatus
instead of an electrophotographic type copying machine. The image
forming apparatus 10 is not limited to a copying machine
especially, and the present invention is applicable to any
apparatus that performs image forming processing to a sheet, which
may be a printer or a facsimile apparatus.
[0077] Technical features of the aforementioned embodiments may be
combined with each other, whereby a new embodiment can be
configured.
[0078] The foregoing embodiments are illustrative in all points and
should not be construed to limit the present invention.
[0079] The scope of the present invention is defined not by the
foregoing embodiments but by the following claims. Further, the
scope of the present invention is intended to include all
modifications within the meanings and scopes of claims and
equivalents.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0080] 10 Image forming apparatus [0081] 20 Main body [0082] 24
Manual-feed tray (sheet tray) [0083] 26 Side door (door) [0084] 30
First processing unit [0085] 31 Opening [0086] 40 Second processing
unit [0087] 42 Second processing unit main body [0088] 43 Output
tray [0089] 48 Hollow [0090] 91 Vertical direction [0091] 92
Toward-away direction [0092] 93 Depth direction
* * * * *